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catheter ablation from inside the left atrium to address other sites that cause fibrillation. In this way, we isolate the triggers of atrial fibrillation, those that initiate fibrillation and those that let the fibrillation sustain itself." This procedure has proven highly eec- tive in treating patients with refractory atrial fibrillation. " Hybrid ablation prov ides a g reat oppor t u n it y for col laborat ion w it h surgeons," says Dr. Slotwiner, who is an electrophysiologist by training. "We like to break down traditional barriers and have dierent physicians work together to enhance patient outcomes." ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY: THE LEADLESS PACEMAKER Dr. Slotwiner and his colleagues are also proud to oer the leadless pacemaker, a dev ice t hat does away w it h ma ny potential complications of a traditional pacema ker, including infections and broken leads. While a traditional pace- maker is placed in the upper left chest with leads traveling down to the heart, the leadless device is a self-contained unit the size of a pen cap. Physicia n s deploy t he pa cema ker through a vein in the leg into the heart, where it attaches to the heart muscle. The device contains a lithium iodide battery with a 10-year lifespan. " T h e r e 's n o w i r e or s c a r r i n g ," Dr. Slotwiner says. "Patients hardly know they have it. We are the only institution in Queens to oer the leadless pacemaker." EXACTING SKILL FOR OPEN SURGERIES For patients facing open-heart surgery, surviva l is of the utmost importance, and that is where NewYork-Presbyterian Queens excels. In 2015 and 2016, accord- ing to Dr. Lang, the hospital achieved less than 2 percent morta lity for coronary artery bypass surgery. High standards and exceptional outcome rates are espe- cially important to patients in the area; they know they can access extremely safe open-heart surgery close to home, with no need to travel outside Queens. "Queens ha s a popu lation of more tha n 2 million people, a nd we a re the on ly hospita l here t hat ca n per for m open-heart surgery," Dr. Slotwiner says. "Our results are excellent — as good a s or better tha n most in the state of New York," Dr. La ng says. " We have a n outsta nding ca rdiac a nd thoracic surgery program, especia lly where our outcomes are concerned." It t a ke s a t ea m ef for t t o a ch ieve high-qua lity metrics, yea r a f ter yea r. A l l c a r d i o v a s c u l a r s e r v i c e l i n e s are involved. " We work closely with other provid- ers to ma ke sure patients who come to us have been properly eva luated by a cardiologist," Dr. Lang says. "They typi- ca lly have undergone a catheterization a lready. Our core cardiac services are of utmost impor ta nce to what we do as surgeons." The surgica l team consists of expe- r ienc e d phy sici a n s who h ave b e en a t Ne wYor k-P r e s b y t e r i a n Q u e e n s for some t i me. T he s t a f f of nu r ses , physicia n assista nts a nd surgeons is comfor table working together, know each other's rhy thms and run a closely coordinated program. Dr. Pontone monitors a patient during an exercise stress test. Dr. Slotwiner speaks with a patient. M D N E W S . C O M /// M D N E W S L O N G I S L A N D ■ 2 017 0 9